Home Retail Group Financial Services has been awarded two prestigious accolades at the Loyalty Awards 2014, with its personalised reward and retention programme, Argos Card Rewards, achieving ‘Best Loyalty Programme of the Year – Financial Services’ and ‘Best Use of CRM in a Loyalty Environment’.

Celebrating excellence, innovation and best practice in the loyalty industry, the Loyalty Awards recognise the achievements of companies across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

The Argos Card Rewards (ACR) programme utilises sophisticated technology to analyse customer behaviour to inform the rewards and promotions it offers individuals. ACR considers key life events, such as birthdays or moving home, aligning the dates with activity on the Argos retail calendar to send a targeted promotion with a personal message. ACR also uses the data it holds on each cardholder to gain a deeper understanding of their individual spending habits and moulds rewards / promotions accordingly.

An in-house solution offered by Argos for Business, a division of Home Retail Group Financial Services and expert in the field of customer incentives and motivation, aids the success of ACR - ensuring that any offers issued cannot be picked up virally by voucher code or deals websites and redeemed by the masses. With Argos Collection Code, ACR differentiates itself from other loyalty reward programmes, as the offers made available are unique to the individual.

With over 4 million Argos Card Rewards contacts, Home Retail Group Financial Services, in collaboration with Argos and Argos for Business, secured the awards with judges citing ACR had achieved impressive figures that illustrate what can be achieved with data segmentation.

Judges commented:

“Argos revolutionised its Argos Card offering with targeted offers that make it very interesting and compelling for customers. The result was a 16% increase in sales and net 150% above forecast and incremental sales up 36%. Impressive figures that illustrate what can be achieved with data segmentation.” Best Use of CRM in a Loyalty Environment.

“In a sector in which it is challenging to innovate, Argos makes use of data and targeting to take on competitors. This is an example of a company recognising the potential of analytics.” Best Loyalty Programme of the Year – Financial Services.

Danny Clenaghan, Managing Director, Argos for Business commented,

“We are delighted the Argos Card Rewards programme has received such recognition, especially in such coveted categories, and up against such worthy peers.

“The award is testament to our expertise in the industry, but also serves as evidence that investment in the development of technology is key. Home Retail Group Financial Services is committed to continual improvement and innovation and plans are in place for further consumer research, along with a range of channel and data developments scheduled to ensure that Argos Card Rewards is delivering a marketing plan that aligns with customer needs.”